Quality Assurance must shift to smarter solutions...

Quality Assurance must shift to smarter solutions as the complexity of applications and need for speed increase.

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Capgemini and Sogeti’s World Quality Report 2017: 99% of testing teams highlight challenges with testing due to agile and DevOps adoption; only 16% of respondents are using smart test solutions effectively

Paris, September 26 2017 – Capgemini, a global leader in consulting, technology and outsourcing services and Sogeti, its Technology and Engineering Services subsidiary, today released the 9th edition of the World Quality Report 2017 published in conjunction with Micro Focus. This year’s report examines the state of application quality and testing practices across multiple sectors[1] and 32 countries. The report reveals how testing teams are facing challenges on two main fronts: a significant reduction in annual testing budgets and the ongoing shift towards agile development and DevOps approaches. The survey also shows a lack of maturity in the area of smart testing adoption with only 16% of respondents using these technologies to their full potential.

Testing budgets fall, but are expected to rise again

This year’s World Quality Report identified a decrease in the proportion of IT budgets allocated to quality assurance (QA) and testing, for the second year running. Down from 35% in 2015, 31% in 2016 to 26% in 2017, the drop reflects a significant shift away from human resources to hardware and infrastructure, which now accounts for 46% of the testing budget. Despite the current drop, the report predicts that greater demand for testing in mobile applications and Internet of Things (IOT) will cause budgets to rise to 32% by 2020. Testing budgets between organizations also vary hugely; from less than 10% of IT budgets to over 50%. By moving to smarter, automated testing solutions across their development portfolios, organizations will be able to plan better and gain greater efficiencies from their budgets.

New models emerge as agile and DevOps disrupt testing teams

This rise of agile and DevOps is challenging the traditional structure of QA and testing teams. In response, organizations are shifting testing staff from central Testing Centers of Excellence, embedding them in individual development teams instead, in a bid to achieve greater flexibility. However, an overwhelming 99% of respondents are experiencing complications when testing in agile, with 46% citing lack of data and unstable environments as the biggest hurdles. A new model is now emerging where the Testing Center of Excellence will provide unified guidance and decision making around tools and platforms.

Smart testing technologies are under-exploited

To combat these challenges, organizations are turning to intelligent test automation to cater for smarter applications and increasingly complex IT landscapes. Effective automation helps ensure quality while freeing up testing resource to focus on new development work. Yet despite tangible ROI, such as decreased time to market, only 16% of respondents are using automation effectively. The main challenges holding 50% of organizations back are exponentially growing data sets, fluid AI applications and forthcoming regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Hans van Waayenburg, Member of the Group Executive Committee at Capgemini and Head of Sogeti said: “This year’s World Quality Report demonstrates that testing teams are coming of age, but facing new challenges with the shift to agile applications. Digital transformation provides a huge opportunity for growth, but organizations must be proactive in breaking down silos between business, development, quality and operations, while using agile and DevOps to focus on customer value and business relevance. To retain a competitive edge, quality assurance and test organizations must move towards test ecosystem automation, predictive analytics and intelligence-led quality assurance and testing, for better business outcomes.”

Raffi Margaliot, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Application Delivery Management, Micro Focus said “We are proud to deliver this year’s World Quality Report to help IT and application delivery leaders around the world understand and plan for the disrupting forces of agile, DevOps and digital transformation. With our customers witnessing the confluence of these megatrends every day, the report becomes all the more relevant for business decision makers. It is also a testament to our commitment to partner with our customers in their transformation journey ahead.”

World Quality Report research methodology:

The World Quality Report, which this year interviewed 1,660 respondents from 32 countries, is the only global report analyzing application quality and testing trends. It has been produced annually since 2009. Now in its 9th edition, the 2017 report adopted data collection through computer aided telephone interviews. Based on analysis of six respondent groups: CIO, VP Applications, IT Director, QA/Testing Manager, CDO/CMO, and CTO/Product Head, the report surveyed respondents from across the globe through quantitative interviews followed by qualitative deep-dive discussions.